Jaclyn Figg
Staff Writer
Offering a wide variety of services, the Idaho State University Career Center is committed to helping any and all students to have a successful college experience. Located on the third floor of the museum building, the center is focused around helping students decide on the major best suited for them and assisting students to secure a job subsequent to their college career.
“In a general sense we provide career counseling for students who are really unsure about their major, unsure about their career direction and there are many of those students on campus,” said Lance Erickson, counselor and director of the career center.
Students who are unsure of their major or who might feel like going to college is a waste of money and is not going to get them anywhere are encouraged by career center staff to visit the center. It offers one-on-one counseling along with other opportunities to help students get on the right path towards a successful career.
A career assessment is available to students to help them narrow down what interests them. A student takes the assessment and is asked a series of questions; they are encouraged to give the most honest answer possible. The results contain a job family with options for multiple careers. Students may then research corresponding fields with help from the career center.
“We are here to help students be even more successful, particularly in finding the right path for them. The goal is to find out what kinds of fields really resonate with who a student is,” said Erickson.
The center offers a Career Path Internship (CPI) Program, a program to help students get a paid internship, on or off campus, in their field of study.
The CPI program, now in its sixth year, started with an awarded budget of $300,000. The program is now up to $2.3 million this fiscal year. Last year, 864 total students participated. Ending the first quarter, 460 students are already involved this year.
The program reportedly helps students get real world experience, build a resume and build confidence as they near graduation.
“I think the career center, specifically CPI will be getting more popular in the sense that employers aren’t really looking for internships anymore and it is becoming an increasing need for students and obviously where do you go to learn about those except for the career center,” said Tara Smith, job location and development coordinator at the career center.
Currently, eight of the big accounting firms are coming, or a few have come, to the career center to interview accounting students at ISU.
To help prepare for these types of events a counselor at the center does one-on-one work with students. A practice interview is conducted with the student. The counselor reviews the student’s resume, cover letter and personal statement for graduate school, then records the interview. This is a free service to help students get jobs, internships or school programs.
“We have helped thousands of students get jobs, internships, get into medical schools, graduate schools, dental schools, through our interviewing process, we prepare students really well,” said Erickson.
A one credit career and life planning class is available through the center. The class is targeted at a student’s value system, job skills, job searching and writing a resume, among other life lessons. There are six sections that seat 24 students each and are offered one day a week for 50 minutes.
The career center will host the annual career fair in the ISU Ballroom Feb.17. The fair can host 55 to 70 venders. The 2015 fair reached mass capacity with 71 vendors. Usually between 500 and 600 students take advantage of this occasion.
The career center has revamped their website with resources available for students. On the home page there is a link to a program called “Focus.” This program gives the option to take different self assessments, including a work interest, personality and skills assessment, eventually providing a career portfolio.
For more information, visit www.isu.edu/career.
“I think it is important students know about the career center because we can help in so many ways,” said Smith, adding that their goal is to let as many students as possible know so they can benefit from the resources offered.
